Game 61: Islanders vs Habs

GAME PREVIEW: THE ISLANDERS ARE SUDDENLY ALL INJURED

Hey Habs fans, you thinking winning streak? TWO GAME WINNING STREAK!? Man, we haven't had one of those since the Reagan Administration. I might be off a couple of weeks, but you get the point. This team has gone a long time without a sustained string of victories.

Tonight, the Canadiens host the New York Islanders fresh off their dramatic Tuesday night win over the New York Rangers. The Islanders, on the 2nd leg of a massive 9 game road trip, come into Montreal with a slight limp or sixteen. Their victory Tuesday in Detroit came at big expense, as New York lost not only winger Casey Cizikas, but star winger Cal Clutterbuck to an undisclosed LBI. Also out long term is defender Travis Hamonic. The injury woes come at a bad time for a team that's desperately trying to make up ground in an exceptionally difficult Division.

Over on the Habs side, not a lot of changes are expected tonight - there are still rumblings and questions surrounding the long-term status of Greg Pateryn, since Marc Bergevin officially let everyone know he intended on dealing the capable 3rd line defender. The story still makes as much sense as Bergevin's handling of his organization's defensive depth.

After losing Mark Barberio, another more-than-capable 6th defender, to the waiver wire (an entirely avoidable conclusion), the Habs, who just a few weeks ago had good defensive depth, now suddenly find themselves scrambling.  Recent acquisition Nikita Nesterov hasn't shown much since coming to Montreal, and neither has Zach Redmond or Joel Hanley.

So maybe Marc should just take a step back, and be happy with what he's got in Pateryn? Just a wild thought.

In any case, it's likely the Habs will repeat their Tuesday lineup against the Islanders, with coach Claude Julien hoping for another strong performance from the Thomas Plekanec, Artturi Lehkonen and Andrew Shaw to help push his teams to (wow!!) another victory.

Puck drops at 7:40 EST. Yours truly is traveling tomorrow, so it's unlikely I'll be able to post live game blogging updates.

Game 50: Habs vs. Islanders

New York (Islanders) 3, Montreal 1:

FIRST PERIOD:

- By now you've probably heard about the little trade the Habs made this afternoon, picking up defemsenan Nikita Nesterov from Tampa Bay for a low level draftee and 6th round pick. I can see the rationale here - the Habs have seen what Zach Redmond and Ryan Johnston have been offering since Andrei Markov went down to injury, and they're not pleased. Adding depth to the 3rd line as insurance policy, I suppose would be the best way of explaining the deal.

- The Weber/Emelin pairing aren't exactly enthralling me with confidence the way they've been guarding their crease the past couple of weeks.

- This arena the Islanders play in is so substandard as a hockey venue, it's embarrassing. The backboards, obviously not placed correctly, grab Price's stick, and refuse to let go.

- Good sign for the Habs, bad for the Islanders, but it looks like Carey Price is continuing the fine play from Tuesday night right into Brooklyn:

Quick glove by Price on Tavares. pic.twitter.com/SlZGsObxcm

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) January 27, 2017

- Bad news for the Habs, this has been a pretty bad start to the game, first 10 minutes almost all the play in the Canadiens zone, Montreal mustering up two very nothing shots on Weiss.

- Head standing not enough, as Ladd beats Price 5-hole to open the scoring, the Habs again struggling to make simple zone exits, which has only intensified the pressure this period. Really, really bad period by the Canadiens so far.

- Okay, not sure what's been happening in Brooklyn lately, but this Islanders team is playing far, far more organized hockey tonight than at any point I saw them this season. Maybe mid-season coaching changes really do work after all?

- Habs pretty badly outplayed in that first period, credit to the Islanders who look a whole lot better than they did earlier this season. New York's defence looking far more organized, while the Habs made some poor choices in how they constructed their attacks, not only failing to consistently gain the zone, but overemphasizing on feeding the line for shots, which were mostly easily blocked by the Islanders defenders. Habs will need to go back to the blackboard and come up with a different plan, or this could be a long night ahead.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Islanders dominating the Habs 14-4 SOG in that period, 54.2% CF - a bit misleading. Eyeball test told you New York more or less manhandled the Canadiens first 20 minutes:

- Respec da udder guy':

Price gave Greiss a little pad-tap coming onto the ice for the 2nd #Habs pic.twitter.com/bZNusXuQy0

— Shayne Pasquino (@shaynepasquino) January 27, 2017

- Weakest part of Zach Redmond's game is moving the puck forward, which more often that not, he can't, beyond just firing it at open ice. It's not doing the Habs any favours with constructing anything resembling a transition game. When Redmond is on the ice, the Canadiens' offence basically grinds to a complete halt.

- Habs on pace for a pathetic 14 shots tonight, their gameplay clearly wasn't adjusted  between periods, and it's show in 14 million colours so far. Canadiens have almost zero forecheck happening, too many players are going through the motions. 

- Price doing more headstands again, keeping the score manageable. But the Islanders are still dominating this game so much, seems almost inevitable they'll (eventually) extend their lead. 8 minutes left.

- Habs tie the game. Couple of observances. First Lehkonen makes a fantastic play driving to the net, forcing Seidenberg to take a hooking penalty (if not, likely giving up a very high percentage scoring chance). Then on the powerplay, Weber with quite possibly his hardest shot as  Hab that literally goes through Greiss (or his glove anyway) to tie the game.

One of Shea Weber's most interesting attributes is making shots that are normally saves bounce off like a Tom Barrasso rebound from 1987. pic.twitter.com/aZQ4637a8g

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) January 27, 2017

- You know what? Best just keep Zach Redmond off the ice. Preferably just out of the lineup entirely, but there aren't a whole lot of other options available. Ryan Johnston? No thanks. Sigh. 

- Habs are Habbing the Islanders so far tonight, getting pretty much trounced both ends of the ice, but not losing on the scoreboard. That's two periods where the Islanders soundly outplayed, out-forechecked, outskated, and outworked the Canadiens. If not for Carey Price, New York ought have at least a 2 or 3 goal lead.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Avert your eyes, kids. Just ... look the other way. This is scary, scary, scary stuff:

- How bad have the Habs played tonight? Here are the heat maps for even strength shot attempts:

- Crazy great scoring chances for the Islanders to start the period, including a powerplay, posts hit, loose pucks in front of empty nets barely cleared, Habs are clinging to a tied score, but only barely because of luck and great play by Price.

- Ladd puts the Islanders back in front while teams are 4-on-4. Mystifyingly, the Habs send out their defending forwards, the Islanders say "hey thanks for being stupid and sending out the wrong guys, we'll just score here."

- Alexei Emelin. The suckage has been bad tonight. That pattern has been on the incline for about a month so far. Might be time for Therrien to reconsider his pairings and give Weber a more competent mate to work with.

- Well how 'bout this? Weber just got a new partner, it's Beaulieu. Emelin now paired with Petry. 

- Andrew Shaw making his contribution, taking a late period interference penalty. Thanks, Andrew (in his modest defence, it was clearly embellished, but still, there was interference).

- Bailey right off the bat makes it 3-1, and that should do it. Oh well, it's hard to be upset about the result (beside the Habs being terrible) - the better team is winning and will win.

- Abysmal. Just abysmal. I'd be inclined to revoke everyone's vacation pass this weekend, except for maybe Price, Beaulieu and Barberio, pretty much the only 3 who showed up tonight for the full 60:

- Habs with a pathetic effort tonight, basically dominated from the first puck drop to the final buzzer. Dreadful outputs by most of the Habs offence, poor decision making by Therrien sending out the wrong guys during a 4-on-4 which gift wrapped the Islanders game winning goal - about the only players who showed up tonight were Price, Beaulieu and Barberio. Otherwise, everyone else was either going through the motions, or stumbling through their shifts. Thankfully the All Star break has arrived. It'll give this team five solid days to shake its collective head.

YAY, LIVE FROM LOS ANGELES IT'S THE NHL ALL-STAR WEE .. ZZZZ zzz zzzzzz ......

Hey, it's All-Star Weekend! Are you excited? Yes? Then please go away and never come back.

The rest of you who consider this four day period of unnecessary and avoidable hockey exile, you can stay.

The Habs travel to Brooklyn to finish up the unofficially first half of the NHL season, as they take on the suddenly "good" New York Islanders.

The Islanders have won 4 of their past 5 games, with one of those wins coming the day before New York unceremoniously fired head coach Jack Capuano and replaced him with former NHL tough-guy Doug Weight.  In any case, New York has a couple of impressive victories during this little run, with wins over the likes of the L.A. Kings and Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Islanders are dealing with some minor injury issues, with regulars Anders Lee and defenseman Thomas Hickey out of the lineup. Scott Mayfield will fill in for Hickey. Otherwise, New York is pretty healthy.

Same can't still be said about the Habs, with Alex Galchenyuk again being a scratch tonight after aggravating a knee injury. It's a good decision regardless of how Galchenyuk feels at the moment - an extra week of rest might hopefully get him back into game shape. So with AK27 out, the Habs will play the same lines as they did in their 5-1 win against Calgary on Tuesday night, with Phillip Danault, Thomas Plekanec and Torrey Mitchell your top 3 centers.

Okay, back to the Islanders. While they have been winning of late, it's all likely inconsequential, at least as far as their hopes for post-season qualification. A very poor start to the season, largely due to an ineffective defence (32.6 SA/60 3rd worst in the NHL, 2.84 GA 21st ranking, 46.1 CA/60 worst in the NHL) has made Thomas Greiss and Jean-Francois Berube two of the busier goaltenders this season. To their credit, Greiss (2.31 GAA, .927 Sv%) and Berube (2.82, .916 Sv%) have performed admirably - Greiss especially so, with some of the top stats in the League this season, there's a decent argument to be made for him being a Vezina Trophy candidate this spring.

The Islanders' defensive woes have mainly been systematic and structural - New York has done a very poor job coming back to defend their zone, with their forwards often leaving both defenders (and netminder) hung out to dry, especially on plays down low. If the Habs have done their homework, they ought to be emphasizing the cycle tonight in an attempt to exploit this weakness.

So enjoy the game tonight, because of this silly weekend on the way, it'll be the last game involving the Habs until the middle of next week.

It's Greiss vs. Carey Price. Puck drops at 7:10 EST.

Game 7: Habs vs. Islanders

MONTREAL 3, NEW YORK ISLANDERS 2.

FIRST PERIOD:

- A spirited start to the game, both teams look like they have plenty of legs - both netminders could be busy tonight.

- Desharnais line continues to surprise with their strong performance - chemistry continuing to build between DD and Shaw and Byron. Meanwhile, we're still waiting on Plekanec to make an appearance this season. Hasn't been very good getting himself into good shooting/scoring positions.

- Emelin falls down along the boards trying to retrieve the puck. We've mentioned the awful ice conditions at the Barclays Center - the worst areas of bad ice are most often found along the boards.

- If you watch closely, you'll notice the puck on edge quite often, which is a sign the ice is too soft. Makes passing and stick handling very difficult. 

- This hasn't been an issue that's gained much notice, but Habs are having far too many faceoffs deep in their zone this season, in part because the defence hasn't done a good job in transitioning the puck, in part because this team ices a lot, in part because Montoya likes to freeze the play. So far tonight 13 faceoffs, 8 deep in the Habs zone. Only 3 have been on Islanders' side of centre.

- So I predicted a busy night for the goaltenders. Yeah, that's really working out brilliantly. 

- The first 3 minutes of the game were pretty intense, very fast, and then the game just kind of fell off the cliff. Really think the ice conditions are playing havoc with both team's ability to organize effective rushes - shot totals were just 8-6 for New York, with maybe 1 or 2 of those shots remotely posing scoring danger. Looks like this game will be a grind to the finish. Grab a pillow and sneak some Z's. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs CF (5v5) after 20 minutes was 51.5%. To sum up a pretty bad period of hockey, here were the scoring chances:

Do you see them? Yeah I know, it's hard to tell. But there were two. That's all, folks.

- There's a good case to be made that Radulov removed, Paul Byron has been the Habs best playing forward this season. So it only seems fitting he opens the scoring off the rebound of a Gallagher shot. 1-0 Habs.

- Just not happening for Plekanec. But he's doing the right things. Puck luck has been dreadful.

- Galchenyuk line, it appears to have risen. Habs are dominating this period - Islanders are very fortunate to be only trailing 1-0.

- He's been turning heads for his scoring, but one of the real talents, if not his biggest hockey skill, is Radulov's passing. So sharp, so often pinpoint accurate. We knew his signing was important, but so far, it's looking huge.

- Islanders are getting destroyed in the neutral zone. It's allowing the Habs to carry the puck in flying. Montreal firing all cylinders this period, but still only lead 1-0.

- If Greiss doesn't bring is A game tonight (as he has), the score might well already be out of reach. Habs pluggers have been delivering on the scoresheet, while the big guys, Pacioretty, Galchenyuk and Plekanec, can't seem to finish.

- Hoo boy, Islanders get first powerplay in the game, have only scored once with man advantage this season, and tie the game after Emelin flubs an easy clear in front of Montoya. 

- Well, the Habs are getting Habbed tonight. Totally dominating the 2nd period, and all they have to show for it is a 1-1 tie, mainly because the team hasn't finished (bad puck luck - it had to come the other way!), a great performance in net by Greiss, and simple mistakes - Emelin's poor puck play on the PK. What goes around, comes around, I guess.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Ah, the hockey gods be cruel to the Canadiens in that 2nd period, where they had 80+% SA CF (5v5), 2 period total of 67.9%:

- Greiss doing a most excellent Carey Price impersonation, robbing Beaulieu off a Weber rebound. Seconds later, Beaulieu hits the goalpost. Literally five seconds after that, Gallagher hits iron. Habs puck luck has been atrocious. Their PDO is going to tumble after this one is done.

- One could easily argue the Habs almost certainly don't deserve their 5-0-1 record, because they've had exceptional goaltending and an unsustainable shooting percentage. Tonight, though, they deserve a much better fate. Hockey is like that. Impossible to figure out.

- Beaulieu might have had a little taste of the doghouse the past week, but tonight he's been pretty much spectacular. Therrien appears to have recognized that, and has him top pairing.

- Well, since the big guns can't seem to do the job, it's up to the 4th line. Fine grinding work by Mitchell to push the Islanders zone, working the puck on goal, and Danault picking up a juicy rebound to drill it home past a sprawling Greiss. Habs, mercifully, justifiably, take the lead. 

 Lousy, lousy shift by ... guess who, the Habs 4th line, and also Emelin, who was in a daze leaving his goaltender out to dry. Seidenberg with a one-timer through a screen to tie this game. Glaring mistakes, just a few here and  there, killing the Habs.

- Shaw, two breakaways in the 3rd, zero shots on goal. Yeah. Never use in the shootout. Ever.

- What a crazy 3rd period. Weber with an absolute howitzer from 45 feet that Greiss could only wave at. Annnnnnd the Habs take the lead again. 3 minutes left.

- Islanders haven't been able to muster much of an attack since the Weber goal, but now Gallagher takes a high stick penalty with 25 seconds left. Sooooo .... we're not quite there yet.

- Habs kill the clock, and pull out a win that they richly deserved. SA CD (5v5) for this one was 59.2%, the 2nd period one of the most one-sided frames you'll see in hockey. Habs powerplay converted their only chance to win the game, which will be a huge confidence boost to that unit. Meanwhile, Habs saw fine performances by Beaulieu, Byron and Weber, and Montoya was steady and sturdy when needed. Habs head home to face their eastern rivals, the Lightening, tomorrow night, looking to improve on what has been a very impressive start to their regular season.

GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

The Montreal Canadiens are hitting the road to play the first of back-to-back games, starting tonight in Brooklyn, where they'll face the New York Islanders, and tomorrow back home, against the Tampa Bay Lightening.

Speaking of Brooklyn, the Barclays Center is the brand-spankin' new home for the Islanders, the greatest, most wonderful sporting arena in the history of sporting arenas. Check out those sight lines! Look at centre ice. How it glows! For whatever reason, some of the paying customers are complaining! Yeah, I don't get it either - you can see more than half the ice! That's like ... more than 50%! Yet still the locals moan, moan, moan. Joe Swicicki of Levittown complains "I didn't know it would be this bad. They need to do something about it". Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before Joe. Why don't you do us all a favour and knock off an "ick" or two from your name? It's way too hard to type. Let's let "cdenigris" take the microphone. She'll set you straight. Cdenigris? Floor is yours:

I've been to arena's all over the country. I live on Long Island and used o drive to NJ for Nets games. I was looking forward to this place for the Nets but it is horrible. The Islanders are now moving there and it is even worse. Not only do I have to shell out 43 bucks for an off peak train for me and my fiance to get to the arena on the railroad but it is DARK, CRAMPED and downright unpleasant with the worst angles ever! Especially for Hockey, half of the arena is obstructed view. It hurts me cause she hates it so much she won't even go and this is where my teams play now. I am going to miss my 15 min drives to Nassau Coliseum where I could park my car. The good days are surely over in NY and I am inline for the move to NC between losing my team and the jobs here. The Prudential Center in NJ is much nicer and wider. Everyone moved out of Brooklyn in the 50's and honestly they should have stayed out unless they planned on bulldozing it and building some parking lots and nice modern facilities.

Okay, never mind. That one kind of meandered ... but wow. WHAT AN INGRATE. You people are awful. Let's let Barclays Centre CEO Brett Yormark set you proletariats straight:

Our seating capacity is over 15,700. Within that capacity there's a lot of great seats. Do we have some obstructed seats? Yes we do. Are fans aware of those obstructed seats before they purchase them? Yes they are. There's really nothing we're going to do from a capital improvement standpoint. You can watch the game on your mobile device. 

GOT IT YOU PAYING CUSTOMER FILTH?! BRING YOUR DAMN PHONES SO YOU CAN WATCH THE GAME ON IT. DO I HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING FOR YOU?!!?

Sheesh.

Oh yeah, Yormark has one other thing to say about actual playing conditions at this awesome new venue:

"We've brought on board an ice technician to really manage the ice. I think we're getting really good marks from the players."

Ahhh ... kay? Well ... just to be sure, let's ask the players. Hey, Cal Clutterbuck? How's the ice surface at your home rink?

"Unplayable."

INGRATE! MR. YORMARK WORKS HIS FINGERS TO THE BONE TWO DAYS A WEEK FOR YOU LITTLE BRATS AND THIS IS HOW YOU THANK HIM??

So maybe they'll have ice tonight - or maybe not. Regardless, the Habs are going to rest Carey Price, which means it's Al Montoya!! BRING ME HIS HEAD.

Puck drops on ice - or maybe hardened grey surface concrete ... whatever, at 7:10 EST.

Game Twenty-Two: Islanders vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders through 40 minutes:

- And Gallagher is done for the night. This is obviously the news we were not wanting to hear.

- If Gallagher is gone for any extended period of time, the gate of opportunity has now opened for George Holloway.

- Alex Galchenyuk continues to shoot pucks off target. I still think he tries too hard looking for corners, which results in a pretty poor shooting percentage.

- Islanders pressing as we near the halfway mark of the 3rd. Habs playing an increasingly passive game as the frame progresses, which means the Islanders are getting more and more scoring chances.

- Islanders with a terrible powerplay, but somehow manage to score as the man advantage ends, as Markov and Subban get all kinds of messed up in front of Price. Game tied, and Dale Weise, who took a terrible penalty, can sit on the bench and think it over.

- Another symptom from playing a passive game. Your feet stop moving. When your feet stop moving, you take more penalties. Habs with three minors this period alone - one costing them the lead.

- ALEX GALCHENYUK. FINALLY.

- Habs powerplay strikes, a beautiful cross ice pass by Subban to Galchenyuk who finally, FINALLY scores. Habs take late 3-2 lead.

- Andrighetto given late game shift, with Habs leading by just one. Clearly, Therrien has been impressed.

- Islanders get nailed for too many men, with just 83 seconds left. An astounding stupid penalty at this stage in the game.

- Pacioretty. Empty net. Game. Set. Match.



SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders through 20 minutes:

- Man, Alex Galchenyuk. Fires puck wide on a totally wide open net. At some point, this will go beyond snakebite, and he'll start to see his time dramatically reduced. Actually, that's already starting. The Galchenyuk line got least amount of ice time in the 1st period.

- Can't figure out the deal with Price - he's having an awful time controlling the puck, resulting in numerous rebounds off relatively simple shots. It's easy enough to write this all off as rust, but it's still very unusual.

- Based from what we've seen the first half of the game, I can't fathom how Therrien wouldn't be anything other than pleased by what he's seen from Andrighetto.

- Greg Pateryn is having another excellent game. He's in the lineup because of Emelin's injury, but he's been so good since getting the call, it's going to be awfully difficult, maybe impossible, for Therrien to take him out. This could make Gilbert the odd-man out.

- Habs 2nd powerplay clicks, as Weise does a nice job moving the puck tight before dishing off to Desharnais for an easy goal. Habs puck movement while on the powerplay continues to look excellent.

- Semin making hay since getting promoted. As long as he continues to generate scoring opportunities, he will get to play. Maybe even regularly.

- Oh dear, Gallagher takes a blast off the hand from short range. Looks bad. Really bad.

- Fleischmann, shorthanded. Vicious snap shot, Greiss with little chance. What an incredible pickup for the Habs. At $750K, possibly the greatest bargain in the National Hockey League.

- Gallagher's hand after that shot. I'm no doctor, but that thing sure looks broken.

- With Gallagher done, Semin has been promoted to the Plekanec line. Started the night buried on the 4th line, had a couple of good shifts, got promoted to the 2nd line, and now on the top line. Quite a night.

- Good period for the Habs, but possibly very costly, depending on Gallagher's status, which doesn't look good. Habs continue to outperform the Islanders in transitions, which has helped them generate far more scoring chances. As we said at the end of the 1st period, Habs simply needed to continue to play the way they are. Same applies for the upcoming 3rd period.


FIRST PERIOD:

- Rock solid first shift for Semin buried on the 4th line, good forecheck, and nearly tipped a Beaulieu point shot past Greiss.

- Habs doing a good job with zone pressure, another fine shift for Glachenyuk, who just misses off a rebound. If good scoring chances were goal, he'd probably be leading the League in scoring.

- Habs way faster than the Islanders early on. New York basically just in reaction mode, transition game sputtering so far.

- To be perfectly blunt, I don't quite understand all the hype around Hamonic - sure he's fast, yes he's young, but he's awfully sloppy with the puck at times. I don't think the Islanders are gong to nearly get the returns they're hoping for if/when he's eventually moved out west.

- Pretty good looking first Habs powerplay, puck movement was crisp, a couple of decent scoring chances - impressive considering how the Islanders PK is currently rated top of the League.

- Islanders look an awful lot like last year's Habs - lots of puck dump-and-chases, while the Habs have been almost entirely carrying the zone. Guess who's had almost all of the scoring chances so far?

- Still don't think Price is 100%. Gives up a huge rebound off a very routine shot from the line, and Tavares pokes in the loose puck. 1-0 Islanders.

- Hockey is like that. Habs controlled most of the period, but Islanders the only goal, in part because Price couldn't handle a simple shot, in part because Therrien put out the defensively weak Desharnais line against the Tavares line, which is just asking for trouble. That said, Habs just need to keep playing as they are. Eventually the bounces will start landing their way.


GAMEDAY GAME NOTES:

No detailed preview today - we're all familiar with the Islanders, having just played them a couple of days ago. That said ... here's a few points for consideration:

- Habs have a minor case of the injury bug. Torrey Mitchell and Devante Smith-Pelly are out with unspecified injuries. Sven Andrighetto, who will play alongside Lars Eller and Alex Galchenyuk, will get his first start of the season. Also called up for the Habs is George Holloway, a career minor-leaguer, who was a pickup from the L.A. Kings a little while ago. He'll likely not play tonight, but is up "just in case".

- Carey Price will start - will he look better than Friday? Price looked a little bit rusty at times, especially moving laterally in his crease.

- Speaking of netminders, it's unclear who'll start for the Islanders tonight. Jaroslav Halak struggled Friday, eventually getting yanked in the second period. Thomas Greiss came in on relief, and was solid.

More later, if there's anything post-worthy. Puck will drop tonight at 7:10 EST.

Game Twenty-One: Habs vs. Islanders

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders scoring chances through 40 minutes:

- With Price in net, do the Habs attempt to do a lead sit for 20 minutes? There really shouldn't be any good reason to even think about trying.

- I suspect Therrien's rationale for putting Gallagher back with Eller and Galchenyuk is to get the later on the scoresheet. There comes a point where you have to give the damn a poke to get it broken.

- Save for the Islanders'  second goal, sure doesn't look like there was much rust on Price tonight. The guy is astounding.

- Habs are playing a sort of lead-sit game here, zone dump and puck chips a-plenty, it's giving the Islanders a fair amount of open ice between their zone and the Habs blue line. Montreal seems comfortable just trying to block shots. Don't think this is a very good strategy.

- Well, there you have it. Nelson's second goal of the night, as the Habs inevitably get pinned in their zone because their tired line got pinned off an icing call. 4-3.

- The consequences of that blown call by the referees, even with the luxury of a replay. The Islanders are given a goal they didn't deserve, and because of that, Therrien not only loses his ability to make another challenge, he loses his timeout. Galchenyuk line gets stuck on the ice, and the Islanders score to make it 4-3.

- Okay, I'm totally perplexed. Petry flips the puck out of his zone, lands in the Habs bench, and Petry is called for delay of game?? Therrien holding the puck IN HIS HAND and slamming it on the boards, all to no avail. Astounding.

- Habs dodge the penalty, and the Islanders nearly tie it up as Price struggles to get across to stop of soft wrister. Puck goes through his legs and literally across the line. Huge bullet dodged, but more importantly, it's another example of a play you'd never see Price make. At least, not a healthy Price. Anyway, Markov saves the day and (for now) the game-tying goal.

- Less than 5 minutes to go. Can that Habs scratch their way to a victory? I have severe doubts that won't win without a 5th goal, but stranger things have happened.

- Not a great night for Price, at least by his standards. I guess there really is some rust with his game, or he's not 100%. His mobility certainly not nearly as crisp as usual. At times he's looked downright awkward moving side-to-side.

- Price tackled, and I mean, literally tackled in his crease by Nelson, helmet send flying - but the officials make no call.

- As I was saying, Habs are gonna need a 5th. Gallagher the empty netter. Two points in the bag. But only barely.

- Hard-earned victory of the Habs tonight, nice to have Price back in the net, which I'm sure gave his mates a shot of enthusiasm, as Montreal came strong out of the gate. Canadiens mostly dominated the first two periods, before settling into a protective shell for most of the 3rd.


SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders through 20 minutes. That was a pretty solid period for Montreal, as the chart illustrates.

- Well, hey there, Halak gets the hook, and Greiss is put in.

- Hamonic makes it 3-2 with a 60 foot slapper that, shall we shockingly, beats Price easily glove side. Price might have been screened, but it's still not the kind of goal that he normally lets in. That's concerning.

- Dang, Semin stopped on a breakaway, glove save. He and Galchenyuk, just not being rewarding on the goals sheet.

- Greg Pateryn. Certainly an upgrade from Alexei Emelin. And Tom Gilbert, for that matter.

- So ... Therrien puts out Smith-Pelly with Plekanec and Pacioretty, for reasons that are beyond my ability to comprehend.

- EGG line is back together again, and even though Semin has been generating scoring chances (and actually scoring points), he's being buried again.

- Petry again? Shot from the line during the powerplay eludes Greiss, with traffic in front. As we noted in period one, the Habs were getting pretty good slot penetration, off some soft Islanders defending. 4-2 Habs. It is a Petry goal - first time in his career that he's scored two in a game.

- Still trying to figure out Therrien's thought pattern with DSP on the top line. I know it's always good to do the occasional experiments with line combinations, but what exactly is to be gained? DSP is not, and will never been, a top line winger. So why waste his time (or Pacioretty and Plekanec's?). Makes no sense.

- Plekanec and Desharnais line have been surrendering more than average scoring chances, the only responsible lines tonight have been Galchenyuk and Flynn (who both have the least amount of ice time). Therrien's deployment continues to be mystifying.

- Habs maintain two goal lead headed into the 3rd period, but that 2nd period was very strange, in particular Therrien's deployments and line combinations. Gallagher with Galchenyuk, DPS with Plekanec, Semin buried, Byron still fruitless not playing on the 4th. Some strange moves that are usually made in games where you are winning easily or losing badly. But not in the middle of the 2nd period of a one-goal game. Therrien "gut-based" strategies rears its ugly head.


FIRST PERIOD:

- Alex Semin. First Habs goal tonight. BANK IT.*

- *conditional that Therrien actually gives him a shift.

- Semin is slotted on the 4th line (yeah okay Michel, whatever), first shift, produces!!! Petry banging home a loose puck, assisted by nice forechecking by Semin who picks up the assist. Did the Habs actually score the first goal? YUP.

- Petry nearly scoring his second before the game is even 6 minutes old. Habs with plenty of intensity to start this game, Galchnyuk looks, as he did last night, terrific. He WILL score tonight.

- Islanders with a very slight possession edge, but their shots have been pretty meek, at least through the first half of the 1st. They'll need to do much better than taking permitter shots on Price. Like, way way way better.

- Therrien putting Byron on the 2nd line, but IT'S NOT WORKING. Plugging 4th line guys on the 2nd line, and 2nd line forwards on the 4th line is stuuuuuupid.

- Nelson pokes home the loose puck, but it sure looks like Nelson pushed Price before the puck was shot in. I think this could/should be overturned.

- Unbelievable, it's a goal. The National Hockey League is fast becoming a joke over what does and does not qualify as interference.

- Fleischmann (righteously) puts the Habs right back into the lead 35 seconds later, Halak looking sluggish moving to his glove side off a perimeter shot. Desharnais line looking very slick so far in the period, passing the puck extremely well.

- Habs really getting good penetration moving into the Islanders slot, which has helped them generate some quality scoring chances this period. Overall, the Habs are way ahead on quality shots, even if their raw totals are fewer.

- Problem with this League's approach to determining goal interference is that they're leaving the decision up to the on-ice officials, instead of going to a central location where, AT LEAST, the decisions could have some consistency. The officials tonight don't appear to be very good (terrible holding call just made on Subban), so if you have bad referees, you're going to have bad decisions made. Exasperating.

- Galchenyuk might be snakebit scoring goals, but it's not going to stop him from making sweet rushes with the puck, as he dishes off to Beaulieu who snaps a shot past Halak blocker side. Another "iffy" goal against the Islanders netminder. 3-1 Habs.

- Very, very good period for the Habs. Passing was crisp, speed much faster than their opponent, Islanders really struggled to contain Montreal's rush, and it's helped to generate a solid scoreboard lead. Halak looking a little off, Carey Price looking very on. Islanders shouldn't even have a goal, but that's the NHL for you.


LAST MINUTE UPDATES:

SEMIN WILL BE ENTERING ... the lineup. Tonight. SO ... watch out.

- While it's good news to see Semin back in the lineup, it's only because Torrey Mitchell is out due to injury (unspecified). But, we'll take what we can get.


TONIGHT, WE FINALLY GET THIS BACK:

So Mike Condon. Hey bud. Thanks for coming out. You looked fantastic for a good solid month. You helped this team get (once upon a time) to the very top of the National Hockey League. FANTASTIC.

But then, about 10 days ago, something went "crash", and I think that might have been the sound of your confidence shattering. Or mabye it was your body breaking in two from the intense strings of games rarely experienced by someone who's been a career-long backup. Over the past four starts, your SV% is less than .850, which is ... sorry to say this, kind of putrid.

At ease, Mr. Condon. At ease.

So all hail the return of the greatest hockey player on planet Earth. I think it's safe to say, the Habs, at least if they had any aspirations of maintaining their comfortable lead in their Division, needed Price back and between the pipes.

So tonight, a significant challenge. The Habs face off against the New York Islanders in their terrible new hockey arena in Brooklyn. The Islanders have just finished up a west coast sampler, putting together relatively impressive wins against the Sharks, Ducks and Coyotes. Actually, the Islanders handled Arizona with relative ease on Monday night. I wonder what that must feel like?

Speaking of Monday night, that was the last time this Islanders team played - so they're rested. Very rested. The Habs, who played less than 24 hours ago - not as rested.

Over in Habsland, the drama continues over the decision to mothball Alexander Semin, which continues to look like the wrong direction with every passing game. Last night, Torrey Mitchell gave his hand a try next to Lars Eller and Alex Galchenyuk, and for the most part, looked completely out of place - playing more a witness to the fabulous efforts by his linemates - in particular Galchenyuk, who's come down with a serious case of goal-scoring snakebite. Something's gotta give there - either with Semin returning, Galchenyuk scoring, or SOMEBODY shoving Therrien aside, and putting an actual 2nd line winger on the ACTUAL SECOND LINE.

There's also drama with the Islanders this week, with young start defenseman Travis Hamonic formally demanding a trade to Islanders G.M. Garth Snow, to a western-based team (including Winnipeg!! He really REALLY must want out).  So now the Islanders find themselves saddled with a disgruntled piece of their blue line - which is about as un-ideal a situation as you could wish for.

This should be a pretty good game. Two young, very talented, very deep hockey teams - two of the best teams in the entire National Hockey League, with the very best hockey player back on the ice.

Oh yeah, and Jaroslav Halak will be playing as well. Wearing the Islanders awful, awful, awful all black jerseys. Cockroaches on skates. It's a New York thing.

Puck drops at 7:40 EST.

Game Fifteen: Islanders vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders through 40 minutes. As you may note, Islanders dominated possession and shot attempts in that 2nd:

- Byron definitely not meshing with either Galchenyuk or Eller on that second line. And the merry-go-round of 4th liners continues.

- Brendan Gallagher is simply an outstanding forward in the attacking zone. I can think of few others, actually, I'm hard pressed to think of anyone else, who has the same level of physical presence and puck command. He's borderline elite.

- Huge break for the Habs as a puck played up the boards on what would have been an icing, hits the linesman and gives Fleischmann an odd man break with Desharnais. 2-1 Habs. A quintessential puck luck play in favour of the team that's arguably been outplayed so far.

- This is very much 2014-15 Habs type of game - so the next obvious question is, will they try to sit on a one goal lead with 13 minutes left?

- We have our answer, and it is no. A beautiful shift by the Plekanec line, and even more beautiful is the way they cycled the puck in the New York zone. Gallagher to Plekanec to Pacioretty to Gallagher for the tip in. A work of art. And a 3-1 lead.

- Condon has had more than a few strokes of luck this season, giving up rebounds from the point, and diving on his belly. Lots of missed opportunities by his opponent so far, but eventually, that luck is going to run out.

- Habs now trying to protect the lead by stacking their blue line - which is an okay strategy as long as you ensure your opponent can't gain the zone. If they do, you're in trouble. Islanders have done it a couple of times.

- Habs just chipping everything away in sight. Islanders are generating more and more chances, as Montreal is pretty much surrendering two-thirds of the ice. Four minutes remain.

- Apart from the sit-mode that the Habs are working on right now, Montreal much better with zone exits this period. It certainly helped them to sustain some pressure after taking a one goal lead.

- Plecks with the empty netter, a conservative victory tonight against a pretty fast and skilled Islanders team. Sometimes you don't aways have play better to win games. Habs simply took advantage of the chances that were provided (puck off the linesman), while the Islanders did not (Tavares missing the empty net). Good teams, really good teams, tend to do that a lot.


SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs and Islanders after 20 minutes, Montreal with a distinct edge:

- Still not convinced Tavares isn't 100%, missing a wide open net during the Islanders first powerplay.

- Okposo opens the scoring off the rush with the powerplay running out, Subban/Markov a bit too passive retreating on the rush, and Condon is caught flat-footed. That's Condon's big weakness - there are periods where he's not moving his feet enough, making him particularly vulnerable on snap shots and breakaways.

- Powerplays, even if they don't score goals, can help produce lots of momentum, and get forwards moving their feet faster. The Islanders, since that man advantage, are distinctly quicker than the Habs right now.

- Almost halfway though the 2nd, it's been almost all New York this period. Shots, shot attempts, zone pressure. Habs are getting steamrolled.

- Fans definitely not getting their money's worth. Islanders have focused on carrying the zone, but haven't been able to string together those passes to finish scoring plays. Habs are looking like last year's team - lots of puck dumps, lots of chases. Very boring hockey.

- Most exciting part of the period comes with less than 10 seconds left. That pretty much sums it up.

- Islanders much better period - they're implementing a strategy that focuses on their speed advantages, Habs playing very much a road game at home tonight. Very close checking, very risk-adverse. Makes for a pretty ho-hum game, which is probably just fine from New York's perspective.


FIRST PERIOD:

- Islanders seem more determined to hit bodies than to construct meaningful offensive rushes. At least so far. If this is the Islanders "formula" for winning, that is, hitting like it's 2006, then they're in for a shock come the playoffs.

- Pretty tight checking period - both teams doing a very good job forcing wingers wide on the rush. Shots are either being easily blocked, or easily saved.

- When the play isn't being forced to the permitter, it's being dumped in. Both teams doing a lot of that in this period, Habs especially so. Their strategy tonight looks to be very, very conservative.

- Islanders penalty kill is a clinic. Absolute perfection covering passing lanes in their zone.

- Amazing how many times Subban has hurt his own teammates with that cannon from the point. I know this is a terrible thing to write, but are they shots impossible to avoid from 40 feet? Smith-Pelly the latest victim.

- Smith-Pelly might be able to drive the net, might be able to draw penalties, but he has almost no ability to score actual goals. Therefore, he's no business playing on that 2nd line. Oh well.

- I give up arguing that Dale Weise should never be on the powerplay. He scores yet another one off a nifty deflection off a Petry point shot, Weise's 8th of the season. He's having a crazy incredible season so far.

- To put Weise into perspective, most reasonable estimates would have Weise top-end season goal production at 15. He's already more than halfway past that mark, 1/6th of the way through the season.

- Good period for the Habs, they played it very safe, but still had control of the tempo with the Islanders focusing more on hits. Net result, the Canadiens had most of the offensive zone play, leading eventually to the opening goal. So far, so good.


HABS AND ISLANDERS GAMEDAY GAME STUFF

You know, I'm still bummed out about the whole Semin situation, so I'm going to keep this to a minimum, in point form.

- First big story - John Tavares, who was reportedly sick as bedridden dog over the weekend, will play tonight, although there's no indication he's at 100%.

- Habs will play the same lineup tonight, which means it's Smith-Pelly on the 2nd line.

- Here's some things to keep an eye out for as you watch the Islanders tonight: The Islanders' numbers into this season are slightly worse than last, possession-wise. But then again, they've been a little Jekyll and Hyde, winning and losing by larger than average margins.

- Islanders' special teams are ... kinda really pretty good so far. New York has the 3rd best powerplay in the League clocking in at 27.6%, while their penalty killing unit is top-rated, with a 90.9% success rate. In other words, the Habs would be wise to just keep this game 5v5 for as much as possible.

- New York's goaltending has also been solid, running under a split system. Thomas Greiss, who's the Islanders' 1b netminder, has posted a .924 SV%, while Jaro Halak, goaltender 1a, comes in with a .936 SV%. Halak will get the start tonight.

- Even though he's missed 3 games from illness, Tavares still leads New York with 11 points. Contain Tavares, and you contain the Islanders.

- Well writing that didn't work. I'm still bummed out about Semin. This team ... I tells ya ...

IT'S OVER BEFORE IT BEGAN. THERRIEN BREAKS UP WITH SEMIN AFTER FIRST DATE

So this is how it ends? So abruptly? So rudely? So ingloriously and ignominiously?

Alexander Semin, if a report yesterday by a very, very old man are accurate, is done in Montreal.

And you know what? It's a shame. A total shame.

Semin's excommunication from the team seemed to start off innocently enough. Semin had a couple of "bad" games (at least by Therrien's standards), so he became a healthy scratch. Brian Flynn took his spot for a couple of games, a fruitless venture since Brian Flynn is, has, and will never be, a 2nd line winger.

Okay, back comes Semin ... oh wait ... nope. Now comes in Devante Smith-Pelly, who's had a few decent shifts besides Alex Galchenyuk and Lars Eller. That's including the times when, for whatever reason, Eller wasn't benched by Therrien for committing some kind of heinous hockey crime. We're still not sure what Lars did.

Thing is, we're still not entirely sure what Semin did so wrong. Yes, he wasn't scoring goals rapid fire when he suited up, but then again, he didn't need to. The Habs have been one of the top scoring teams in the League this season, to an extent that they've been winning even in spite of also having the greatest goaltender on the planet. The Canadiens have enough depth to overcome periods when a particular line isn't scoring many points.

Besides, when he did take his shifts, Semin, as well as his linemates, did well with puck possession. In 10 games, Semin's 5v5 close adjusted Fenwick was a very solid 56.6%. If Semin can be found at fault, it was for his luck, possessing a 98.6 PDO, on a team whose total average is frequently above 104. In other words, the points were eventually going to start arriving for Semin, given enough time.

However, 10 games are all he got. 107 meager minutes of ice time to prove his worth, which by the way, was and still is a bargain. $1 million for a guy that's a former 40-goal scorer. Of course, we never expected Semin to score that many this year, or for that matter 30 goals. Or possibly even 20.  At the end of the day, Semin was serving a purpose on the Habs second line - he was an asset to his linemates - his line was generating very good possession. Semin was doing what he hoped he would do.

Coach Therrien, however, saw it differently.

And now, with 4th liners trying to fill the 2nd line gap, the Habs are a slightly worse team because of Therrien's decision.

Game Sixty-Nine: Habs vs. Islanders

THIRD PERIOD:

- Parenteau has needed some time to find game legs, and he's gradually improving with each period played. Seems to be meshing well next to Plekanec.

- Habs powerplay looked so good in the second, now firmly pinned to perimitor and unable to get anything meaningful on goal.

- De la Rose high sticked right in front of the official. Comes up slowly. No call.

- Pacioretty might be the most dangerous PK forward in the League. He's been awesome on that unit tonight.

- Islanders dominating possession and momentum with 8 minutes left. Habs desperately need that third goal and fast, or this game could flip very quickly.

- First order of business this summer for DSP: lose 10 pounds. Because right now, he's lumbering around the ice more than he is skating.

- Looks like the Habs are just going to try to hang on, instead of working on getting that killer goal. And now Markov has been penalized. Hold on to something, because Montreal once again is doing everything to make this closer than it should be.

- Just when you think Carey Price can no longer amaze you, he goes and amazes you again. Incredible.

- Plekanec can't get it into the empty net, Pacioretty passes the puck into the middle right on the stick of Bailey, and it's 2-1. And here we go again.

- Lars Eller, thank god. Selfless play by Gallagher to feed him after intercepting the puck at the Islanders blue line. Habs survive themselves and manage to get the win. Good to see the struggling players back on the horse again. Parenteau, Plekanec and Eller. Habs will need more of that if they want to keep ahead of Tampa.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Sweet three way passing play, Galchenyuk showing why he's a natural centre with a perfect pass to the right side right on Plekanec's tape, nothing but empty net. 1-0.

- Hoo boy. The Islanders powerplay. Slow lazy change after the puck is shot into their zone, Eller says thank you very much and feeds Pacioretty in front for his 34th. Terrible goal to surrender. 

- Habs with that 2-0 lead, can they drive home the killer goal?

- Powerplay doesn't produce but looks good as Habs are able to maintain puck control. Progress.

- Carey Price up to his old tricks, making ridiculous saves to maintain the two goal lead. Habs sitting a bit and the Islanders are doing their best to take advantage. 

- De la Rose doing more excellent forechecking. Habs have as a whole, improved in this area in this period.

- Very good period for the Habs, they intensified the forecheck, giving them mastery in the neutral zone, which for the most part, contained the Islanders' oft dangerous rush. Carey Price as usual his Hart self. The bottom line is whether this Habs team can finally locate and deliver the knock-out 3rd goal? 

FIRST PERIOD:

- Pateryn gets a start, Gonchar sits, and DSP gets a demotion. 

- Tavares doing a nice dive club attempt with Subban and Plekanec following him closely. Officials not buying it.

- Nice work by Galchenyuk along the boards controlling the puck under fierce checking and eventually drawing a powerplay. 

- Habs approach to 5v4 is exactly the same as it is 5v5. The braintrust still hasn't figured out why that's a problem.

- Dale Weise with an incredibly stupid board. Gets just two minutes. League may review that blindside hit later.

- Price with more acrobatics to bail out Weise and the PK.

- Subban being very physical, but he's being smart about it. Islanders forwards are making appeals to the officials for penalties, but they're not buying. It's a bit of a New York weakness, their forwards are skilled and dangerous, but soft. 

- Brandon Prust can't score, and really struggles to skate at an NHL level. His fitness has really tailed off compared to earlier this season.

- Islanders defense needs to tidy and tighten up. Too many breaks surrendered this period. They've gotten away with it, so far.

- Habs doing decent job to prevent rebound shots. Not such a great job stopping the Islanders from taking the first shot, however.

- Habs now reverting to long bomb passes to generate offense. That's never a good sign.

- Islanders with the better period, which comes as no surprise. Price excellent, yadda yadda. Habs simply can't compete tonight with dump and chase strategy. They need to gear up their forecheck to create neutral zone turnovers. Otherwise, we're simply watching a game that will invariably swing in favour of New York.

GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

Welp. It's the final ever visit by the Montreal Canadiens to the only home the New York Islanders have ever known - the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The ancient building (by North American standards) is being abandoned by its pro hockey team for the glamor of Brooklyn.

The final year in Uniondale hasn't been the usual disaster for the upstart Islanders. They've been competing for top spot in the Metropolitan Division for most of the season, although their hopes for a top Eastern Conference seed has taken a couple of steps backwards in recent weeks, with New York winning just 2 of their past 7 starts.

Meanwhile in Habsland, it's the same old drama. After squeezing through 4/5ths of the season schedule mainly riding the back on future Hart Trophy winner Carey Price, the Canadiens' overreaching fortunes have come crashing back to earth. After taking an embarrassing thumping at the hands of the Senators at home Thursday night, local reports who are finally questioning coach Michel Therrien's "system" of surrendering the puck as frequently as possible, started asking the coach whether the Habs approach to hockey needs fixing. Well, yes, yes ... yes ... yes, very much, it does need significant fixing ... welcome to the club, boys. We've been waiting for well over a year for you to ask you these questions.

Therrien's response was predictable. To paraphrase, the system is fine and won't be changing. Alright then. Live by the system (riding Carey Price) die by the system (Carey Price being human).

So right back on that horse. The Islanders will be hungry for a win, and if Thursday night is any indicator of what's in store this evening, the Habs aren't particularly interested in two points.

Players to watch for? Well, it kind of starts and ends with John Tavares, he of 72 points in 70 games, including 33 goals which puts him dead even with Max Pacioretty (in goal scoring). Speaking of Max, he's the only player seemingly putting pucks into the net for the Canadiens, which is great if you're Max Pacioretty, but not so great if you're the rest of the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs are offensively starved, and badly need some goal scoring contributions by capable players like Lars Eller, David Desharnais and Devante Smith-Pelly, who's been an underwhelming presence since being acquired from the Anaheim Ducks more than two weeks.

So it's the last visit to Uniondale! Unless, of course, these two teams meet up in the post-season, which is a distinct possibility, if the Habs were (as we expect) to fall down the Eastern standings to a 4th or 5th place finish.

Puck drops at 7:10 EST.

Game Forty-Four: Isles vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Another sluggish and sloppy period start burns the Isles again, too many Habs forwards left unmarked, and Galchenyuk finishes the play with a shot that Halak should have stopped.

- Habs have Isles pinned in their zone. Halak keeping his team alive - barely.

- I don't care what the score line says, Weise has been garbage tonight with Plekanec and Pacioretty. All we can do is hope somebody with decision making ability ends this silly experiment ASAP.

- Islanders have given Habs some really open passing lanes most of the night. I think it's helped make the Habs look better than they actually are.

- Pacioretty to Weise: swoosh. Just about anyone who's qualified to play on a top line takes that pass and it's almost certainly 5-2.

- Why Desharnais needs to shoot more: 5-2. Halak getting steamrolled tonight, his mates have really let him down tonight with some sloppy play.

- And it's a route. Plekanec allowed to waltz in, slips one past Halak, who really has been hung out to dry this period. 6-2. Halak gets the hook.

- Wellll ... Lee with a zippy 65 foot wrister that just plain beats Tokarski glove side. Five minutes left, 6-3.

- Annnnnnd ... make it 6-4. Tokarski really fighting the puck. Handcuffed by a wrist shot that pinballs behind him and finally goes off Subban and in. 2:34 left. 

- Lee with a nifty little slew foot on Subban.

- Empty net, Prust on a break, is hauled down, and somehow it's not ruled a goal. Been a good game called by the officials, except for the final two minutes.

- Anyway, good win. Habs had nice fluidity to their game, managing to outscore their opponent despite a pretty iffy night for Tokarski. Will Price be ready for Tuesday night's tough matchup against the Preds? Habs had better hope so. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Weise scores seconds into the second period. Islanders defense still taking first intermission nap. 2-0.

- Islanders not being very aggressive in protecting the passing lanes, and it's generating more scoring opportunities for the Habs. Really unimpressed with New York's passive defensive play tonight.

- No freakin way. Gallagher drew a penalty??

- Islanders get a big bounce courtesy a bad pass by Tavares that hits Plekanec's heel, and Okposo wrists one past Tokarski. Just one of those goals.

- Another powerplay goal off a one timer at the top of the circle. So this is how you beat the Islanders. Plecks makes it 3-1.

- Habs more or less swarming Halak now, Islanders defense reeling.

- Yeeks. Gonchar and Beaulieu get all mixed up retreating to their zone to guard a 2-on-2, allowing Kulemin to pick up the puck in some open ice and beats Tokarski low. 3-2. Habs were on the cusp of taking a three goal lead. Now this game is up for grabs.

- Yeah, a 3-2 lead heading into the third against a team like the islanders is tenuous at best. Therrien can't count on someone like Price to carry his outplayed team to victory. So this one shaping up to be a nail biter.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Habs capitalizing off their first powerplay. Subban. Little different look there, with Subban working his way to the top of the circle for the one timer. That close, goaltenders really have no chance unless it hits them. 1-0.

- Prust engages in a pointless fight. Gets TKO'd. I guess he feels this is his way of contributing? 

- Weaver and especially Emeln being far too slow and soft protecting the crease. Islanders should zone in hard against that pairing.

- Not a bad start for the Habs - lots of near misses on Halak, team seems a little more fluid and aggressive than their lame wristed effort against the Sens. Game seems to be settling in a bit.

- Beaulieu with a very good, very physical shift. Maybe a little too physical, but the kind of mean nosed play that coaches love.

- Habs movement through the neutral zone much more organized this period. Islanders are being forced into defensive puck dumpings.

- Beaulieu with tremendous hustle back to save a sure goal by Tavares. Beaulieu has done just about everything but score in this period.

- Decent opening 20 minutes, Islanders had flashes of pressure, but Habs with reasonably competent transitions, especially in the neutral zone, generated a fair number of clean zone entries. The Habs were the better team, no doubt about it.

PREGAME NOTES:

- In case you hadn't heard, Carey Price is day-to-day with an upper body injury sustained in the game earlier this week in Columbus. No word if he'll play on Tuesday. Joey McDonald has been called up to back up Dustin Tokarski.

- Mike Weaver will get his first Habs start in nearly two months in place of ... Tom Gilbert, and not Alexei Emelin. For some reason.

- Jaroslav Halak has never, ever, ever lost playing against the Montreal Canadiens. His career numbers include 0.98 GAA and .960 SV%. Hoo boy.

OKAY, WE GIVE UP:

I think the headline says it all. We just plain old give up. I mean, what is the point? This Habs team, blessed with talent and depth from the top to bottom, can't get it in gear. Today's events, which were more baffling line shifts, underscore the fundamental challenge that faces this organization.

This team can never win a championship with Michel Therrien behind the bench.

This morning, Therrien made that astounding decision to move career 4th line winger Dale Weise - to the Habs first line, to play along side Thomas Plekanec and Max Pacioretty. The rationale? To quote coach Therrien: "I like his forechecking and puck retrieval skills."

That folks, is a coach that simply doesn't understand the tools at his disposal. For Therrien, even though on any given night on any given english broadcast, you'll hear the old worn out "Therrien is a totally different coach than when he was in Pittsburgh", the plain truth of the matter is, he's not. Michel Therrien is exactly the same guy today as he was 7 years ago when he was unceremoniously fired mid-season by the Pens because that team was woefully underperforming. Why? Because Therrien had implemented an ultra-conservative defensive, ultra-conservative dump/chase/retrieve offensive strategy that put the Pens outside of a playoff spot.

Of course we know that once Therrien was removed from the picture, the Pens totally turned their season around, and in five months, were carrying around the Stanley Cup.

Fast forward 7 more years, and here's Therrien, coaching a team deep with talent, speed and skill, and he's still using the same old game plan. Dump. Chase. Retrieve. And for the most part, it's gotten this team just beyond the boundary of mediocrity. Some might argue that "hey wait, this team is jousting for first place, what gives?". Well, the Habs (tenuous) place in the standings are a facade - the major reason why this team finds itself just a few points back from the first place Lightening has nothing to do with Therrien, and everything to do with the remarkable play of Carey Price, who on close to a dozen occasions this season, carried his out-played team to unlikely game victories.

So now we have Weise on the first line, David Desharnais, who actually looked half-decent on the wing, now playing centre again. Alex Galchenyuk, who was, at least for a while, gangbusters at centre, back on the wing again, P.A. Parenteau, who was constantly shuffled all over the place, not even in the lineup, Sven Andrioghetto, who was racking up goals and assists one night, playing the 4th line the next night, and now playing in Hamilton.

The Habs lineup is now a joke, literally. Tossing names into a blender, and hoping something good comes out.

Well here's the deal tonight. No Carey Price. No Galchenyuk and centre. No Desharnais on the wing. Dale Weise on the top line. And this against the number one team in the Eastern Conference?

The Montreal Canadiens are a team destined for purgatory as long Michel Therrien is behind the bench. Will this team make the playoffs? Sure. Maybe every year. Will it win a championship? No. Never.

Only when Marc Bergevin comes to realize that his coach is just as flawed today as he was 7 years ago, and 4 years beyond that, then his asperations for bringing glory to Montreal are doomed.

Puck drops at 7:10 est. The Islanders are probably going to have their way tonight.